Brazil’s GDP expands 7.5 per cent in 2010; becomes the world’s 7th largest economy

Brazil, Latin America's largest and the world's fifth-largest nation recorded a 7.5-per cent annual GDP growth in 2010 over the previous year, becoming the world's seventh-largest economy surpassing Italy.

According to latest data released by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), Brazil's economy grew to 3.67 trillion Brazilian reais ($2.1 trillion) in 2010.

Commenting on the strongest growth in 24 years, Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said, ''It's a very reasonable number which shows Brazil has the capacity to grow.''

"The 2010 growth rates demonstrate that the Brazilian economy is growing at a significant and sustainable pace, which supports the country's plans for long-term investment projects,'' the nation's finance minister Guido Mantega said.

''We expect GDP to grow around 4.5 to 5.0 per cent in 2011, a rate that would be sustainable and generate no inflationary pressures," Mantega further stated.

The growth was led by the industry sector, which expanded 10.1 per cent, followed by the agriculture sector recording 6.5 per cent growth and services sector 5.4 per cent.